


All That's Left Unspoken

by insomnious



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon Era, Canon-Typical Violence, Episode: s02e01 The Curse of Cornelius Sigan, Humor, Hurt, Intrigue, M/M, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:41:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23375557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insomnious/pseuds/insomnious
Summary: Uther Pendragon has snapped. Renewing his fight against magic he is determined to see it exterminated once and for all. As tensions in the kingdom rise and events unfold, Gwen, Arthur, Merlin, and Morgana find themselves trying to navigate through their increasingly complicated lives. Politics, love, war, and betrayal; nothing will ever be the same again.
Relationships: Merlin & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Kudos: 19





	1. Chapter 1

Uther's rage struck quickly and it was relentless. 

Enraged by the gargoyle attack on the city that left dozens of his knights and people dead, he declared Camelot's renewed efforts in the war against sorcery. Patrols were doubled around the kingdom and many new men were knighted, some instructed to search out the druids wherever they camped, others posted around the city to flush out any sorcerers within their midst. Rewards were placed on any information that led to the capture of anyone practicing magic or those who would harbour them; the kings presence was felt everywhere. 

During the great purge Uther had pushed those with magic to the brink of extinction and this time he was determined to finish the job. It seemed to Merlin that he was close to succeeding. 

Every week or so someone was being thrown to the pyre. Most of the time it was a druid captured by one of the patrols, sometimes it was someone dragged from one of the villages, accused of being the source of some crop failure or outbreak of disease. It was obvious to him that most of them were innocent, accused by their neighbours out of fear of their king and fear of the enemy he said was hiding among them. Yet there was nothing Merlin could do. 

Surrounded by the kings men every second of his day it was all he could do to not get caught himself. He hadn't dared use his magic in a very long time and, at the pleading of Gaius, had burned all of his books on magic. He hadn't wanted to, he fought the idea every time Gaius bought it up but in the end the look of sheer panic for Merlin on the old mans face every time a knight came to see them or whenever Uther became convinced that there was another sorcerer within Camelot convinced him to do it. 

It had been the right thing to do. Not long after, Uther's men had begun searching rooms and houses, tearing them apart in search of any evidence of magic. Merlin's room had been searched and if he had still had the books he would be dead. 

None of that eased the guilt Merlin felt every time someone was put to death. He should be doing something - anything!- to help them. But there was nothing he could do. Every course of action would lead to his own capture and then he would share their fate. Even baser than that though, he was scared. More than scared, he was terrified. Every waking moment of his life was spent watching his own back. 

Three months in and this had became the new state of affairs in Camelot. Merlin's fear -and that of the whole kingdom- grew less acute, settling instead into an uncomfortable background tension. The executions began to slow too although this was a small comfort. Whether it was because those that Uther hunted had become better at hiding or had all already been captured Merlin didn't know, but the kings unyielding determination had not faltered.

Yet, as Merlin wandered through the corridors of the castle in the early hours of the morning, things seemed almost peaceful. Making his way from room to room dropping off medicines for Gaius, he passed only a few other servants getting a start on their morning duties, the sound of their muffled footsteps interrupted only by the birdsongs outside and the occasional noise of a knight walking past.

Knocking on the door of his final delivery he was greeted by a grumpy looking old man.

"Your medicine my lo-"

Snatching the bottle from Merlin's hands, he slammed the door shut with a huff. 

Unfazed, Merlin turned around and set off for Arthur's room. Crossing the courtyard, he felt his chest tighten as a patrol returned dragging two prisoners behind them. Heads hung low, the two women limped along, faces defiant. One of them was old, her thin white hair and wrinkled face telling a story that Merlin couldn't read. The other was younger, much younger; the same age as Merlin probably.

He wanted to look at them, stare them in the face and give them a look to let them know that they weren't in this alone, that they had at least one friend in this place. He looked away instead. He couldn't risk drawing the attention of their captors. In a way they were lucky. Any other time and they'd be dead within the day but this afternoon Camelot was receiving some important visitors from a neighbouring kingdom and it wouldn't do to be holding executions while they were hosting guests. They would live to fight another day. 

Stopping by the kitchens to grab Arthur's breakfast, he pushed open the door to his room and dropped the tray down on the table. Looking over at Arthur, he saw him sleeping face down in the middle of the bed, mouth hanging open and hair all messy. Merlin smiled and felt a load of tension he didn't even know he was carrying fade away. Preparing himself to dodge the inevitable pillow or two that would come flying his way, he walked over to wake up the sleeping prince. 

* * *

"I'm gonna need you scrub my floor before our guests arrive" Arthur called out from behind the changing screen. 

Merlin stopped in his tracks, the still full tub he was dragging out of the room hitting him in the knees, water sloshing around inside threateningly. 

"What?! I did it the other day!"

"Yeah I tracked in some mud last night. Speaking of, I need you to clean my boots too."

Looking over at the boots leaning against the bottom of Arthur's wardrobe, Merlin let out a loud exasperated noise. Yep, mud. Lots of it. 

"Can't." he said, frowning at the moving shadow behind the screen. Arthur's head quickly poked out the side.

"And why's that?" he asked mockingly.

"I need to get a plant for Gaius. Very hand to find, could take me all day." Merlin shrugged.

"Oh really?"

"Yep"

"What's it called?"

There was a pause.

"Ivywart" Merlin said eventually.

"That's not a real plant"

"Yes it is"

"No it's not"

"Is too"

"Is not"

"How would you know?"

Arthur stepped out from behind the screen, throwing a shirt at Merlin that hit him in the face before landing in his arms. Wearing a well-fitted red shirt with the Pendragon crest emblazoned on the left chest and a pair of black trousers, he somehow looked even more fit than he did when he was wearing his armour and almost just as dignified. Merlin felt a familiar feeling stirring within him and he quickly squashed it, burying it as deep as he possibly could.

"You're a terrible liar, that's how" Arthur teased.

"I'm better at it then you know" Merlin retorted.

"Oh really? Got any deep dark secrets you wanna confess?"

Merlin laughed. "They're not even gonna see your floor, why does it matter?"

Arthur just stared at him intimidatingly. Merlin tried to return the look for a few seconds before sighing, resigned to a morning of scrubbing and cleaning. 


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur stood behind his father at the top of the stairs leading down from the citadel entrance into the courtyard. The sun was high in the sky but the air was cold and the breeze blew lazily around them. Winter hadn't arrived yet, but it soon would. 

Wearing his full royal ceremonial outfit, he glanced over at Morgana standing next to him, dressed equally as extravagantly in a long red dress, her face dominated by excitement as their guests rode into the courtyard followed by half a dozen of their servants and a group of knights. 

Lord Endren reached them first. Shoulders back and head held high, he looked back at his entourage before climbing down from his horse and bowing his head at the king. 

"My lord, welcome to Camelot! Uther beamed, arms outstretched in a welcome gesture. "It's been too long."

"Far too long" the man replied, his own worn face relaxing into a smile. Behind him, his servants were helping a young woman down off her horse. Checking herself over to make sure she was presentable, she approached the two men. 

Arthur felt his breath catch as she got closer. Princess Igrid, the youngest daughter of King Fenrik of Hwent and niece of Lord Endren. She was beautiful; her long blonde hair seemingly glowing in the sunlight, her blue eyes were soft and welcoming, her rosy cheeks contrasting her clear pale skin. Arthur straightened himself up. 

He hadn't seen her in nearly ten years and they had been only children then, ten or eleven years old at most. Her family had visited Camelot to negotiate the end of a war between their two kingdoms and gotten stuck when the weather turned severe. Arthur hadn't spent much time with her then but her and Morgana grew close and he remembered how unconscionably sad they had both been when Igrid had to leave. The two had kept in contact since and Morgana nearly jumped out of her chair last week when they'd first been told Igrid was coming to Camelot again. 

She was of course, though, here for Arthur. He had come of age now and his father had taken no time to start reminding him of his duty to marry for the good of the kingdom and begun almost immediately trying to make it happen. Over the last few months countless noblewomen had come to Camelot to meet Arthur, hoping to sweet talk or negotiate their way into becoming his betrothed. 

Arthur had liked them all well enough. They were all very pretty and eager to get along. Much more importantly to his father however, they would all secure important alliances for the kingdom. But something, he wasn't sure what, was holding him back, making him reluctant to pursue any of their hands in marriage.

Igrid gave his father a curt but short hello before making her way up the stairs. Watching her climb, Arthur began his own descent, Morgana in tow. The closer she got the more beautiful she looked and he tried not to stare too obviously.

Maybe it was caution powering his reluctance, wanting to get to know the women he could be marrying for more than a few days. Maybe it was the idea of such an important part of his life being controlled and used by others for their own gain. Maybe it was both. It didn't really matter; soon he would be forced to marry and if his father got his way -which he always did- he would be marrying Princess Igird. 

Their two kingdoms had been at peace for nearly a decade now but that was unusual and unlikely to last. While not overly antagonistic, Hwent was every bit as powerful as Camelot and the two of them sharing a border while holding opposing interests meant that they were at war more often than not. This marriage would be their best chance at making the peace last.

Finally reaching one another, the princess curtsied and offered up her hand to Arthur. 

"My lord it is good to see you again"

"Likewise" he smiled, kissing her hand. She smiled back warmly and Arthur felt his stomach jump. Next to him Morgana shifted on the spot, trying her best to contain her impatience. Sighing internally, he turned to face her "And of course you remember Morgana." 

With that the two of them lurched towards each other with enough excitement that it was a miracle neither of them went tumbling down the stairs. Laughing and asking each other a million questions, they drew the attention of the king and his guest, now joined by a third man Arthur recognized as Prince Rodren, Igrid's twin brother. Although his own hair was brown and his complexion less pale, the two looked remarkably alike. 

As the three men began walking towards them, Arthur turned, searching for Merlin. Finding him standing with Gwen attentively by the nearby wall, he gestured him over. Around them the other servants had already begun descending towards their visiting counterparts, helping them to unpack and showing them where to go. 

Pointing with his head towards the princesses own maidservants, Arthur cleared his throat as his servant approached. 

"Merlin, help them find their way to the princesses room and set up their things will you." Next to him, the two ladies had returned their focus to him. 

"Of course. Sire. Princess. My lady" Merlin bowed his head and set off. Arthur stopped himself from rolling his eyes. He was the most insolent servant in the entire kingdom but when around guests he was suddenly on his best behaviour. 

Arthur offered a hand to Igrid.

"In the meantime, I would be honoured to show you around the castle." He smiled as she took his hand.

"That would be wonderful" she cheered. "Camelot is every bit as magnificent as I remember."

With that, Morgana and Igrid said their goodbyes before Arthur guided the princess up the stairs, their arms linked, Uther and Endren talking away behind them. 

* * *

Walking slowly through the castle corridors, Arthur and Igrid made small talk about her trip, how excited the princess was to be in Camelot once again, and the many wonderful things Arthur had heard about her own home. Mentally preparing himself for a pleasant but all too familiar afternoon of polite conversation, Arthur began walking her through a well rehearsed tour of the citadel. Turning a corner on their way towards the royal stables, Igrid gasped and walked excitedly over to a small window overlooking the lowtown far below. 

"This is wonderful" she whispered. 

"You know, if you wan't a good view of the city I know a much better spot" Arthur said, hopeful for the chance of a change in routine. 

"Would you?" she jumped. Smiling, she followed him towards the stairs leading up to the rooftop. "This is the first time I've left my home in years. I've wanted to do this for so long."

"Then why haven't you?" Arthur asked.

"My father wouldn't have it" she said sadly. "I've spent my whole life reading about the adventures of countless knights and explorers and the whole time I've been stuck within the walls of our castle."

"You've not left at all?"

"No." the princesses stared off into the distance wistfully.

Arthur couldn't imagine living like that. He'd spent countless hours riding through the forests around Camelot for no reason other than the joy of it. He often went out hunting when the stress of his duties got too much for him and he wanted nothing more than to be alone. Well, except for Merlin of course, someone had to carry his things. And scare away all of the wildlife with his loud clumsiness. God forbid Arthur actually catch anything. 

"You never thought about ignoring your father? Damn the consequences?" he asked cautiously.

"Oh all the time" she replied, giving him a knowing smile. "I wan't to go out and see the world, experience everything it has to offer! There's so much out there and I've only seen a tiny bit of it." she continued, her face settling into a look of wonder and excitement. "There are so many things I want to do, people I want to meet!" 

Arthur grinned. He could see why Igrid and Morgana got on as well as they did. The princess looked back at him, meeting his grin with her own. Then, just as quickly, her excitement vanished. Her grin dropped off her face and the wonder in her eyes faded away. 

"But I have a duty to my family. To my kingdom. That has to come first" she finished. 

"Yeah." Arthur agreed solemnly, ignoring his own feelings of sympathetic disappointment. 

Reaching the staircase, the two of them spiraled upwards until they reached one of the castles many rooftop balconies. Below them, the people of Camelot went about their lives, the noises of the city filling out the background. The sun was lower in the sky by now, casting shadows over everything. The wind was much stronger up here too, blowing Igrid's dress around and flinging her hair into her face yet she didn't seem to care. Running over to the edge, the princess stared wide eyed at the view as if trying to take in every little detail. 

"This is amazing. Camelot is amazing!" she beamed.

For the first time since he'd started showing visiting noblewomen around, Arthur realized happily, he believed her. 


	3. Chapter 3

The great hall quickly filled as knights, nobles, and entertainers began flooding in and taking their places at the feast. Tables piled high with various meats, fruits, breads, and sweets, the sounds of laughter and drunken conversation thrummed loudly through the air. 

Standing a short distance behind where Morgana was seated, Gwen chattered away with Merlin as they ran around refilling cups and clearing away dirty dishes. 

"That's the third sweet pie he's had tonight!" he said, looking over at Sir Desten, one of the visiting knights from Hwent. "If he's not careful he's going to have more chins than brains soon."

Gwen smiled and swatted at Merlin. "Stop it! That's so rude" she giggled.

"Mind you he's starting to look like a pie himself don't you think?" He continued. 

Gwen shot him an insincere frown and was met with a wide faced grin in return. She cracked, laughing. The man had been so rude to her ever since they arrived this afternoon, ordering her around while she tried to attend to her own lady, barking at her from across entire rooms, and letting her know in great detail how disappointed he was in every aspect of her performance. She felt a little better now. 

Trying her best to look friendly, Gwen smiled at the visiting servants across the hall. They all looked worn out from their trip and she couldn't help but feel sympathy for their situation. It was difficult enough at times keeping up with her duties and she couldn't imagine trying to do that while on the road. A few of them smiled back and one of them even raised the wine jug he was holding at her.

* * *

Making her way through the winding streets of the city towards her home, Gwen tried her best to ignore the cold that had settled over Camelot. After spending hours in the warm comfort of the great hall, stepping out of the citadel into the pitch black had been a shock her body was still trying to recover from. Letting out a sigh of relief when she reached her door, she pushed it open, upset to find no sanctuary from the cold inside. 

Rushing over to the hearth, she started a small fire, warming herself and beginning to get ready for bed. Preparing her clothes for the next day, she noticed a letter on the floor by the door, slidden underneath during the day and missed in her haste to escape the cold. Picking it up, she sat down at the table and opened it. Reading it, she felt a smile grow on her face. It didn't say much, but it was the best thing she'd read in a long time.

Her brother was coming home!


	4. Chapter 4

Morgana tried to run but no matter how far she got she never made any progress. Around her the landscape was blurry and smudged; the closer she tried to look the more unfocused her eyes became. There were people here, speaking to her, though she couldn't understand what they were saying. Their voices were garbled and somehow both distant and unbearably loud. One of them grabbed her by the wrist and began running, pulling her along with them.

She tried to make out their face but even that was impossible, her eyes sliding off their features as if she was a frightened child. She yanked her arm free and the figure turned around, yelling something unintelligible. More people gathered around her, their voices getting louder and louder until it felt like they were coming from inside her own head. She closed her eyes and tried to shut them all out but instead the voices inside her morphed into a flurry of emotions. Feelings of anger and dread slammed into her like waves, threatening to drown her. She tried to resist, to stop herself from being washed away, but she was quickly overwhelmed. 

Jolting up in her bed, Morgana threw her head into her hands and tried to stop the shaking. She could feel the tears running down her faced and wiped them away, looking over to her window. it was still nighttime. Probably would be for a few more hours. Breathing deeply, she tried to calm herself.

She had suffered from nightmares for her entire life, they were nothing new to her, but they'd been getting worse. Over the years, Gaius had given her many medicines and instructions to try and ease her sleep and not a single one had worked. Sometimes they did for a while, but eventually she would always find herself woken up in the middle of he night, screaming or crying.

They use to happen infrequently, two or three every month. But now never a week went by without her loosing sleep to the demons of her mind. Even more worryingly, they had been getting more intense, chipping away more and more at her resolve and her sanity. 

Feeling cold, sweaty, and stuffy she got up and left her room. As tired as she was she didn't want to try sleeping again anytime soon and she needed some fresh air. Walking silently through the empty castle, she tried to banish the images of her dreams from her mind. 

As she passed the library, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Spinning around, she saw a silhouette walking hastily through the darkness, turning towards the citadel entrance. Curious, she sped up to try and get a better glimpse, rounding the corner just as the figure rushed out and down the stairs into the courtyard. Walking over to the nearby window, Morgana tried to make out the appearance of the illusive shadow. 

Something about them made her uneasy. It could be any number of people, from a servant heading home for the evening to a knight late for his patrol, yet as she watched them, everything within her screamed danger, for her to call for the guards. Wearing a black cloak pulled up over their head, they slinked through the courtyard, constantly looking around nervously as if worried about being followed. What were they doing running around the castle this late at night? Why did they look so nervous? _I'm running around the castle this late at night too_ she thought to herself. _I'm sulking around in the shadows nervously._ A noise off in the distance startled the cloaked stranger and when they turned around Morgana got her first proper look at their face. 

Prince Rodren.

Morgana sighed. His sister had often told her about his habit of drinking late into the night with their men before trying unsuccessfully to sneak back into his room unnoticed. Igrid had noted that he wasn't very good at it, often trying to play it cool while their guards pretended not to notice how drunk he was. Watching him now Morgana could say she had been completely right. 

Suddenly feeling self conscious about her snooping, Morgana turned and started to head back to her room. Hurrying along, her sense of unease returned. She made a mental note to summon Gaius in the morning to see if he had any new ideas to treat her nightmares. They had always affected her mood but now they'd begun to make her jumpy and paranoid.

Making it back to her room, she climbed into bed. Staring up at the roof she was determined not to close her eyes. She would wait until she had spoken with the physician tomorrow. Before she knew it however, her eyes were dropping and her consciousness slipping as she lost her fight and fell back into a troubled sleep. 


	5. Chapter 5

"...do I have to?" Merlin sighed, dropping the bags he'd brought with him from the kitchens. 

"Yes Merlin, you have to." Arthur rolled his eyes, pointing to the training field, sword in hand. Behind him, his knights began to gather around, greeting Merlin enthusiastically and grabbing the fruit and bread he'd brought for them. 

Technically that wasn't his job; he was only supposed to bring Arthur's lunch but ever since the king had started his new push against magic he had them training all day every day, when they weren't off on patrol or following up on rumors of sorcery that never went anywhere that is. There was enough misery in the kingdom at the moment and, unable to do anything to help those condemned by Uther, Merlin wanted to do something -anything- to brighten anyone's day, even if it was just making sure some knights had full stomachs everyday. 

"You could use the training" Sir Rhys, one of the newer knights, spoke up. "If you ever get jumped by a bandit or a sorcerer or whatever, who'd keep us fed?" the knight continued, winking at him from behind his ginger fringe. 

Merlin laughed, letting out a noise of agreement before picking up a shield and jogging over to join Arthur on the field. Gods it was heavy. 

"It's all for your own good" Arthur agreed, smirking. Merlin recognised the look in the princes eyes and knew that this was going to be a long and painful afternoon. 

* * *

After about an hour of so of pummeling, broken up only by the occasional reprieve when Arthur needed to correct the technique or posture of one of the knights, Merlin was sore and his arms were heavy. Preparing to defend himself from another flurry of sword strikes, he noticed Gwen on the sidelines, smiling and waving at him from amongst a crowd of other servants. 

Waving back excitedly, his gaze quickly drifted over to the people they were all accompanying. Morgana, the princess, and her brother were deep in conversation, watching the training knights. Noticing the onlookers, Arthur quickly made his way over to greet them.

"Princess" Arthur nodded. "Looking lovely today" he smiled.

Igrid blushed, lowering her face before looking back up at the prince. "You look very impressive out there. If the rest of your knights are half as talented as you are then it's no wonder Camelot is as fearsome as it is."

Looking very pleased with himself, Arthur looked back at his men. "That was just some light practice. If you'd like, I can show you how the knights of Camelot really fight?"

"I'd love that!" She replied, looking very excited. Next to her, her brother glared at them before excusing himself politely and heading back towards the castle. Merlin was metres away from them and the look on Rodren's face made even him feel uneasy. The other's seemed unbothered. 

"Try not to hurt yourself showing off" Morgana teased. 

Her comment was quickly brushed off with a dismissive noise as Arthur returned to the field. 

"It's your lucky day Merlin. You're off the hook. Go...do whatever it is you do."

"Yeah thanks" Merlin scoffed, shaking his head. _Definitely serving you the watered down wine tonight,_ he thought to himself. Grabbing the now empty bags, he set off towards the castle.

As he passed the knights, Sir Leon gave him a curt nod and Sir Cedrec gave him a pat on the shoulder. 

"See you tomorrow Merlin!"

Merlin smiled and continued on his way.

* * *

The sun had already begun to set by the time he returned to Arthur's room. He'd spent most of his afternoon running errands for Gaius and mucking out the stables. Now, as usual, he was late. For now the prince was still training but Merlin needed to get back before he finished to help him out of his armour -that he'd then have to spend the night polishing- and before he could do that he had to prepare a bath; Arthur would want one before he went to dinner with their guests. 

Putting away the fresh laundry he'd brought with him he sped off to go get a tub, rounding a corner and slamming face first into another servant, sending food flying in all directions. 

"Sorry!" Merlin yelped, rushing to pick up the renegade food scraps.

"You'd think by now you'd have figured out this whole being on time thing."

Merlin looked up to see the half laughing half frowning face of Henry staring back at his, his brown hair completely messed up, a now empty plate in his hands. Well if he was going to ruin someones night at least it was someone he knew. Merlin smirked.

"Apparently not." Shoving the food back onto the plate, Merlin sped off again. "Gotta go! Make it up to you later. Bye!"

Reaching his destination with only one other near miss, Merlin set some water to boil and lugged the tub back up to Arthur's room. Setting it down with a thud, he began running frantically back and forth, slowly filling up the tub with warm water. _Not warm enough_ he thought to himself after emptying the last bucket. In his rush he hadn't let the water boil long enough. 

He sighed. He didn't have enough time to replace the water and Arthur wouldn't be happy about having to have a lukewarm bath. For a second he thought about using his magic to warm the water but the immediate and all too familiar tightening of his chest and overwhelming fear put an end to that idea. Even here, alone in Arthur's chambers with no one else around, he felt the kings piercing eyes on him, sending a shiver down his spine and causing the hair to stand on the back of his neck. Hopefully Arthur would be too busy to admonish him for it. 

Heading back out of the castle and through the city, Merlin was stopped in his tracks by a chilling, bloodcurdling scream. Fully alert, he spun around trying to figure out what was happening. He wasn't the only one; all around him people were murmuring in worry and confusion, some of them trying to find whoever it was that was very likely in serious danger. A pair of knights burst around a corner from a side street, obviously as confused as everyone else. 

Then there was another scream. 

Then another. 

People began to panic and as he looked up, Merlin noticed that the sky was shifting. The clouds had turned dark grey and began twisting in on themselves. More screams came and soon they melded together into a chorus of shrieking. The clouds continued to shift and twist, forming themselves into dozens of mangled faces. Some of them looked angry, others scared, but all of them screamed down at Camelot with an intensity in their eyes that would shake even Uther. 

Around him all sense of order had broken down. People were running and screaming and trying to find anywhere inside to hide. A mother dragging her child behind her barely avoiding being hit by a runaway cart as it careened by, smashing into the wall of a house behind them. A man knocked over by the fleeing crowd was helped up by a knight whose horse bolted the moment he dismounted. The shrieking continued to grow in intensity and soon it sounded like it was coming from all around them. People continued to panic, pulling and shoving, hiding under market stalls, fleeing towards the citadel. Merlin wanted to join them, to be anywhere but here, but he found himself frozen in place, staring up at the sky, feeling....something.

The grey puffy faces continued to scream and convulse, illuminated by the red and orange light of the setting sun. Heart racing, Merlin recognized the look in their eyes. Hatred. 

Sprinting off towards the training field, he hoped with everything he had that Arthur was still there. Pushing through crowds of people and dodging hysteric animals, a group of knights stormed past him, sword drawn. Merlin saw Sir Leon among them, his face calm but his wide eyes betraying his true state. 

Reaching the training field, Merlin saw no trace of Arthur. He tried unsuccessfully to calm himself down. Of course he wasn't here, he was probably already back at the castle, leading the knights response to whatever was happening right now. He slammed his eyes shut and tried for a moment to collect his thoughts but between the screaming in the sky and the sound of people rushing by all around him there was too much noise. 

And then suddenly it was fading away.

As quickly as it started, the screaming began to slow until it faded away completely. The faces dissolved, leaving behind only normal clouds as the sun finally sunk below the horizon. Surrounded by the sounds of a city in panic, Merlin stood in the middle of the field and tried to collect himself. His heart was still racing, threatening to burst through his chest. As he looked around, he couldn't help but feel the hope he'd been holding onto since coming to Camelot finally slipping away from him. Through everything that had happened he had kept that hope. Hope for the future. Hope for a kingdom -and a prince- who might one day see magic as a tool to be used for good. Hope that one day he might get to live as himself. But after the last few months, after this, he knew that that day would never come. 


	6. Chapter 6

"It was a threat!"

Uther's voice boomed angrily through the council chamber as knights, nobles, and advisors shuffled around him. Outside, the sounds of the crowd that had fled to the citadel seeking its protection could be heard over even the chorus of shouting and murmuring going on inside. 

Standing next to his father, dirty, sweaty, and still in his armour, Arthur looked around the room, surveying the scared and stressed faces that surrounded him. He found himself frantically searching for one face in particular, his anxiety increasing -as if it could go any higher- when he couldn't find it. Everyone had been caught off guard by the horrific display that had just torn apart the sky and they were still scrambling to take stock, still unsure if they were even under attack.

"Sire, the gates have been shut. Our men are sweeping through the city looking for the prisoner now. She won't escape" Sir Gadran, one of the king's longest serving and most trusted knights, spoke up. 

"Good" Uther growled. "Whatever they've done we will put a stop to it!" 

"What prisoner?" Arthur asked urgently. "Do we know who did this?"

"The sorcerers we bought in yesterday morning escaped this afternoon" the knight replied. "One of them managed to get away but we stopped the other one."

"Where is she now?"

"Dead" Uther spat. "Her friend will join her soon enough"

The look on his fathers face was one Arthur had come to recognise well over the years. He'd been on the receiving end of it once, when he defied the king's orders and went off in search of the mortaeus flower. Morgana had been on the receiving end of it numerous times with how often she defied him. They were the lucky ones; most who saw it didn't live to tell about it. For once, however, seeing it was a comfort. His father was going to stop at nothing to defeat their enemy. 

If Arthur had learned one thing over the past three months it was that magic was a much bigger threat then he had ever imagined. When his father had started his push against sorcery, Arthur hadn't believed it to be worth the extra effort. Sure, lone sorcerers and the occasional beast had attacked Camelot before but they had always been defeated. He'd even been conflicted about the knights orders to hunt down the druids; worried for the child that he had helped escape all those months ago. 

But as sorcerer after sorcerer was found hiding among them, their deeds exposed, he realised his mistake. Magic was lurking in the shadows, watching and waiting, searching for an opportunity to strike. Whether or not they knew it, Camelot was under siege. Today had been another reminder of their enemies malice.

Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Arthur turned to find Sir Rhys.

"How are they?" he asked the knight.

"Well as can be said for anyone right now" he replied. "A bit shaken up but I left some men at their door to help ease their minds."

"Thank you" Arthur nodded and the knight walked away. 

At least one thing had gone right tonight. He wasn't sure if the princess would still want to stay in Camelot after what had just happened -he hoped she would- but at least he knew for now that she was safe. He returned his attention to the conversation his father was having with several of his advisors. Gaius had joined them but Arthur was still unable to spot Merlin among the crowd. 

"Do we know how they escaped?" the king asked.

"We do not" one of the advisors replied. "The guards say no one entered the dungeons before their breakout and it looks as if the cell gate was simply unlocked."

"Could they have used sorcery to open it?" Uther looked expectantly at Gaius.

"Unlikely sire. To do so would have required precision and time that they simply did not have."

"The most likely scenario is that they had help" Sir Jasper, another senior knight, concluded. 

Uther's face froze into an expression of steely rage.

"There's another sorcerer within Camelot"

"We must find them at once" Arthur spoke up. "As long as they're out there who knows what else they could do"

"Mm" Uther agreed. "We've obviously been holding back too much. These sorcerers within our walls need to be hunted down quickly."

"Sire, you cant possibly be thinking of-"

"I am Gaius. It's long overdue we summon Aredian to help us in this fight."

"Aredian?" The look on Gaius' face worried Arthur. 

"The most fearsome witchfinder in all the kingdoms" his father responded. "There's not a sorcerer alive or dead who could hide from him."

* * *

The frantic meeting continued well into the early hours of the morning. As the knights continued to search the city it became increasingly apparent that the escaped prisoner had somehow already left the city. The crowd outside the citadel had finally been dispersed and, growing more and more irate, the king ordered everyone to leave him, his voice a barely contained roar. 

As he left the council chamber, Arthur felt a wave of relief wash over him when he found Merlin waiting for him. Leaning up against the wall, he looked tired and a little disheveled, making Arthur wonder how long he had been standing there. _Stubborn idiot_ he thought fondly. Arthur was quickly snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed the look of distress on Merlin's face. It was only there for a moment and when he looked up at the prince his face opened up into a smile, but it had been there and Arthur felt his resolve harden. 

As prince, it was Arthur's duty to protect Camelot and its people from all of their enemies, no matter their nature. Sorcerers or not, he would face them head on and soon Merlin and the rest of the kingdom would be able to sleep easy at night, unbothered by the fear of those who would see them all dead. Arthur would make sure of it. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! This is my first time writing anything so its a bit of mess. My editing skills are a bit rusty too so if you see anything wrong feel free to say something. Some of the tags might not be accurate yet but this is only the first few opening chapters so the story should catch up to them hopefully soon.


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